


Real Thing

by Sheeple02



Category: Jung Jaehyun - Fandom, NCT (Band), Qian Kun - Fandom, WAYV
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate universe - Mafia, F/M, Mafia NCT, mafia wayv, mafia!au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-16
Updated: 2020-12-16
Packaged: 2021-03-11 05:14:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 16,136
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28109913
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sheeple02/pseuds/Sheeple02
Summary: (Y/n), a college student who joined WayV ─ an international crime organization ─ for some extra cash as one of their hackers. But what happens when she gets mixed up in a lot more heavy stuff than only sitting behind a computer and disabling security cameras?
Relationships: Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun/Reader, Qian Kun/Reader
Comments: 5
Kudos: 11





	1. Poison parties

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Just a quick fyi: I have posted moodboards of the characters on my Tumblr (Sheeple)   
> So, if you like the story/want more content, you can check them out :)

It’s early in the morning when I walk in the tech building of my college campus to attend my first class of the day.

Last night I was called to fix some mess one of the guys had caused and I didn’t expect it to be up until three to disable cameras and delete footage which showed someone to be burned alive. Not a pleasant sight I tell you that.

I turn around a corner but stop as I see two familiar figures ─ Korean exchange students Jung Jaehyun and Kim Doyoung ─ from my mechatronics class, standing at the end of the hall. I quickly take a step back and hide behind a wall, making sure that they can’t see me.

“Look, I don’t give a crap, Jae. Qian Kun has to pay what he fucking did to us”, hisses Doyoung and shoves a small plastic bag in Jaehyun’s hands. My breath hitches and I curse silently.

Everyone at WayV knows what happened. Qian Kun, our boss, was a part of NCT before fighting his way out, taking anyone who wants to go with him. There where some snitches in the bunch, names nobody is allowed to say, and he dealt with them.

Of course, the Boss doesn’t shy away from murder. The weird lumps in the garden of HQ are a cautionary tale of what happens when you either betray him or disobey his orders.

“But… poisoning?”, questions Jaehyun. “Can’t you just shoot him in the face? And how will I even get close to him without being suspicious?”

“There’s a party this Saturday. Taeil made sure you got a position as a server there.”

Jaehyun nods slowly. “So I can slip this”, he holds up the small bag, “in his drink or food?”

“Bingo.”

Jaehyun puts the small bag safely in a side pocket of his backpack as the bell rings. “Let’s go, Mrs Shin will murder us if we’re late again.”

Doyoung rolls his eyes as he and Jaehyun walk away.

And lucky me, my next class is with them. So I make sure that I take a seat close to Jaehyun and Doyoung. The only one being behind them, but I can deal with that.

Look, I usually don’t meddle with stuff too deep into the… darker circuit of WayV but, Qian still is my boss so protecting him is right, right?

Jaehyun gives me a small smile and Doyoung glares at me when they see I sit behind them, before scooting closer to his friend and whispering something in his ear.

Luckily, Jaehyun has placed his backpack with the pocket towards me. If I time it correctly as both of them are immersed in the lesson, I can ‘drop’ my pencil. And while I pick it up, I unzip the pocket and swiftly take out the small bag.

Finally, after half an hour of taking notes and glancing towards the two guys, Doyoung has his head buried in his arms as he’s probably sleeping and Jaehyun is too busy taking notes.

I bump my pencil off the table and it drops in the ground, next to Jaehyun’s bag. I mentally cheer and reach down, ready to unzip the bag.

But before I can do anything, another hand reaches down and grabs my pencil before I can. I look back up and see Jaehyun smiling at me.

“You dropped this”, he says kindly, his accent heavy as he tries to speak with right pronunciation before handing me my pencil back.

I smile slightly. “Yeah, thanks though.” I reach out and grab it.

“Do you understand anything Mrs Shin is explaining?”, he asks in a hushed tone.

I shake my head. “Nah. I’m going to read the summary she puts online.”

He raises his eyebrows and looks surprised. “She does that?”

With a nod, I open the website on my laptop and turn it around. “Mrsshin.com, there.” I point out how the site works and where he can find the summaries of the previous lessons.

And like that, the class ends and I huff. He’s too charming that it’s distracting me from my mission. And how will I intercept the poisoning now?

The only thing I can think about is that party Doyoung was talking about. Does Yangyang know? I swear if he does, I’m going to strangle him with the cord of his headphones.

“Yo”, I say as Yangyang picks up after I started to call him, waiting until both guys are out of earshot. “Do you know anything about the Boss throwing a party on Saturday?”

“Ehm no”, squeaks Yangyang on the other side of the connection, a sign he’s lying.

“You’re lying”, I hiss, ignoring the strange looks from students all around me. “Why didn’t you told me? Did you hide or threw the invite away?”

“There was no invite. Boss called me and said to keep my mouth closed. He wants me to keep an eye out on the security camera’s and you are free.”

I let out a frustrated growl. “I am free? How dare he? I can do security too!”

“He said something about forbidding you to go because of your last job. What happened there?”

I run a hand through my hair, getting into my car and linking the phone call to the BlueTooth. “I had to watch someone get burned like a witch through CCTV. Which I don’t understand since you usually do that.”

“Oh”, Yangyang lets out rather shocked.

I hum. “Yeah. And it’s not like I can’t handle a bit of heath, you saw it yourself. I stand with both of my feet on the ground and won’t cry over just another burning corpse.”

Yangyang stays silent, the clicking op his mouse stopped too.

“YY? You okay?”, I question, my face falling.

“Jezus (Y/n). This life really fucked you up.”

A low chuckle leaves my lips. “It really did…”

“But how did you even got the information about the party? Did Lucas talk too much?”

I shake my head, even though he can’t see it. “Worse. I heard two guys from one of my classes talking out poisoning Boss. They want him to pay what he did to NCT.”

A gasp leaves Yangyang’s lips. “Are they from Boss’ old gang?”

“I think? I tried to fetch the poison out of one of their bags but failed. Now the only thing I can think about doing is going to that party and warning Boss.”

“I can do that too, you know.”

“No, you have to stay and be on call. Just keep an eye open for both of them. When I am back, I’ll show you a picture of the guys.”

Yangyang lets out a heavy sigh. “I hope you know what you’re doing”, he says before he ends the call.

* * *

It’s the day of the party and somehow I have managed to find a document with the invitations and printed it out of myself.

“Are you sure you should go? I mean, Boss particularly told you not to go”, says Yangyang through the phone as my car reaches the valet of the party.

I roll my eyes. “Look, YY, it’s not like Boss will recognize me since only you and Lucas have ever seen my face. Nothing to worry.“

A loud groan erupts from Yangyang’s side of the line. “Just… stay out of trouble okay? The Boss is merciless when you disobey his orders.”

“I’ll have to go, I have almost reached security. Don’t worry, okay? I know how to handle it myself.” I end the call with a sigh

As I walk up the steps of the giant mansion, I smooth out my dress and push the fake glasses up the bridge of my nose.

A guard stops me, “Invitation”, he grumbles as he holds up his hand. I rummage through my bag and pull out a golden envelope with elegantly written letters on the front.

Without glancing at it for a second time, he shoves it back into my hand and lets me through. I am honestly shocked that the fake invitation worked.

I quickly walk into the mansion and look around, grabbing a flute of champagne off one of the waiters’ serving trays so I won’t stand out. It’s not like I will drink anything, I’m not that stupid.

Now I’m in, I have to move quickly if I want to find either Jaehyun or the Boss without being caught. I’ve seen the layout of the mansion a thousand times on screen, how hard could it be?

With slow steps, I start to walk around the massive happening. All different kinds of mafia bosses and powerful people catch my eyes. But no sign of any of my two targets. Maybe I have to inspect the kitchen?

My phone in my handbag vibrates and I grab it. ‘ _Lucas Wong_ ’ it reads on the screen. “Shit”, I curse under my breath, quickly walking towards the balcony and closing the doors behind me, hoping it would muffle out any sounds.

“Hi, dimwit”, I chuckle awkwardly as I place the champagne down on the balustrade and I lean with my now free hand on it. “How’s the party going?”

“Well, you tell me, since you sneaked in it. Turn around.”

I slowly turn around, an annoyed groan leaves my lips as I see Lucas standing in front of the windows, a smirk on his face.

He opens the doors and closes them behind him, taking long strides towards. “Didn’t the Boss tell you to stay away?”, he questions as he leans against the balustrade with folded arms, an amused look on his face.

“Yeah I know but─”

“And you still ignored his command. You know what happens when someone disobeys him, don’t you?” Lucas grabs my chin between his thumb and index finger.

I smack his hand away and look behind me, towards the rose bushes that are in full bloom. “I know, Lucas! But I’ve heard that someone’s here to poison him.”

He scoffs. “Please, don’t make up shit so you can party and drink fancy champagne.”

As I open my mouth to snark something back, a familiar voice interrupts me. “Well, well, well, Xuxi, why don’t you introduce me to your lovely lady friend?”

I gulp as I see the Boss himself, Qian Kun, stand just a few feet away from me, looking like a snack in his black suit and red hair sleeked back.

“Boss. This is─”

“─The name’s Zela, Mr Qian. Nice to meet you. I must say that this is an exquisite party.” I throw on my most charming smile and hold out my hand for him to shake.

The Boss grabs it and places a kiss on the top of my hand. “Nice to meet you too, miss Zela…?”

“Just Zela is fine, Mr Qian.”

He chuckles lowly. “Then call me Kun, darling. Mr Qian is only for employees or business partners.”

I nod as I smile. “Of course, but I would rather be formal, Sir.” I turn around towards Lucas with a smirk. “Can you leave Mr Qian and me alone for just a second, Xuxi? We have… business to discuss.”

Lucas grumbles and walks off. But not without throwing me a glare.

“Oh? You need to talk to me?” Boss folds his hands over each other as his smile turns a bit more serious.

I look around before speaking. “Look, I am here to warn you. Someone is trying to poison you. I wouldn’t drink or eat anything.”

I grab my phone out of my bag and start to scroll through my mechatronics class attendance list. I pull up a photo of Jaehyun and Doyoung and shove my phone under his nose. “Do you recognize these two?”

The Boss frowns and grabs my phone, taking a closer look. “They look familiar. Who informed you about this matter?”

I take my phone back with a sigh. “They’re not the smartest of the bunch. They were talking about poisoning you in the hallway of my college, Sir.”

He hums. “And how do I know I can trust you?” The Boss narrows his eyes together.

With a shrug, I turn around. “You just have to trust me.”

With a light swing in my hips, I walk out of the mansion, throwing one last look over my shoulder to see if I can spot Jaehyun.

My phone vibrates and I see that Lucas has texted me.

**From Lucas Wong:**  
 _If Qian discovers that it was you, you're dead mea_ t

I roll my eyes, quickly typing my reply.

**To Lucas Wong:**   
_He won't unless you tell him_   
_Rember_   
_Snitches get stichtes babe_

**From Lucas Wong:**   
_Whatever_   
_Just don't get caught_

I get into my car and speed off, hoping that the Boss will listen to my words.


	2. Snitches will indeed get stitches

I sit in a cafe just outside my college campus waiting for Yangyang to get here, impatiently sipping my latte. He promised me to meet me here to talk about last night at three, but it’s already half past three and it’s kinda pissing me off if he doesn’t come here quickly.   
  


Just as I want to get all my stuff and leave, the door opens and Yangyang walks through it, followed by Lucas. I curse under my breath and sit back down, folding my arms over each other. What does _he_ want?  
  


“Sorry I’m late, Lucas wouldn’t let me leave until he could join.” Yangyang quickly takes place on the chair in front of me and Lucas grabs one of the unoccupied chairs of the table next to ours.  
  


“I want to know what the fuck happened yesterday and I’m not leaving you alone before I have my answer”, says Lucas with the most serious expression on his face I’ve ever seen and I gulp.   
  


I scan the cafe for any unwanted listeners before leaning forward. “Yesterday, I overheard two classmates of me talking about poisoning the boss with some kind of powder.”  
  


“Did you get it?” Lucas knits his brows together while licking his lips.   
  


I roll my eyes in annoyance. “If I had, I wouldn’t have gone to the party, you dimwit. I tried to grab it during my lecture but those two are so stupid that it would almost be obvious, so I couldn’t.”   
  


“But you said you know the two of them, right?” Yangyang shoves his chair closer as he grabs my coffee and takes a sip of it.  
  


As I snatch the cup out of the hacker’s hands and glare to him. “Yeah, I _know_ them. Here.” I grab my phone out of my pocket and show Lucas the pictures of the two guys in my class.   
  


“Their names are Jung Jaehyun and Kim Doyoung. From my observations, it looks like Kim is the leader between them. Do you recognize them?”  
  


Lucas takes my phone and looks attentively to the two pictures. “They look familiar though. Did they say why they want the Boss dead?”  
  


I take my phone back again and I nod. “Because of what he did to NCT.”  
  


He visibly tenses up and Yangyang sucks in his breath.

  
“Send me those pictures. I’ll have to go now, talk to the two of you guys another time.” Lucas gets up from the chair and places it back to where it first stood.   
  


“Hey Luc”, I call after him and Lucas stops, “please don’t mention my name. I don’t want to get in trouble.”  
  


With one short nod, Lucas turns around and walks out of the cafe.   
  


Yangyang and I both release our breath and slump back into our chairs. I quickly text the pictures and names to Lucas before I forget to do it.   
  


“Let’s go home”, I sigh and grab my stuff, not waiting for Yangyang’s reaction before I get into my car. He quickly follows me and we drive towards our shared apartment.  
  


  
Maybe a week later I get stopped in the hallway by Jaehyun and I gulp. This is it. He discovered that I snitched on them and now he will kidnap me and cut me in pieces. Then snitches will indeed get stitches.  
  


But lucky me, that wasn’t the case.   
  


“Hey (Y/n), can I ask you something?”, Jaehyun asks with a big smile and I nod nervously.  
  


“Yeah sure, what’s up?” I eye around the halls way to calculate my chances to escape if it escalates.  
  


“I wasn’t really listening yesterday so I missed a big portion of the info. Can I maybe copy your notes so I don’t miss anything important?”   
  


I let out a relieved sigh and nod. “Yeah sure, I was on my way to the library anyway so feel free to tag along?”  
  


Jaehyun nods happily and we want towards the library.   
  


I know it’s wrong, being kind and helping someone who wanted to murder my boss but sometimes you just need to show some remorse. And besides, he technically doesn’t know I work for WayV.   
  


“Do you want to write it all or let the copy machine do its job?”, I ask as I grab my notebook and flip to the right pages.  
  


“Oh wow, I didn’t think about that. Thanks (Y/n), you spared me just a whole lot of wrist pain.” He laughs loudly, a bit too loudly for in a library and we get multiple ‘sst’-s from around us. We apologize and walk towards the copy machine.   
  


While the copy machine does what it does best, Jaehyun and I get into small talk.  
  


“What are you majoring in?”, he asks with his arms folded over each other.   
  


“Computer science with a minor in mechatronics, you?” I chew on the inside of my cheek. Collecting information isn’t wrong, right?  
  


“Oh, I’m a microbiology major but I needed an extra credit so I took mechatronics. Maybe not the best combination but I enjoy it.” Jaehyun shrugs while running a hand through his light hair.   
  


What does a crime organisation need with a microbiology major? Who knows.  
  


The copy machine beeps two times to indicate that the copies are done. I grab my notebook and Jaehyun the copies.  
  


“You just saved my ass. How can I repay you?”  
  


“Oh no, Jaehyun”, I shake my head as we walk out of the library, “that’s not necessary. I’m just happy I could help.”  
  


With a reluctant sigh, he nods. “Not happy with that, but okay. Hey, I’ve gotta run some errands so I need to go.” Jaehyun looks at his watch and frowns. “See you tomorrow, last period?”  
  


I give him a smile. “Sure, see you tomorrow. And this time stay with your head by what Mrs Shin’s explaining.”  
  


We wave goodbye to each other and Jaehyun quickly whips out his phone before walking out my sight.  
  


I let out a sigh that I didn’t know I was holding. He’s too charming with his smile and the way he ruffles his hair so effortlessly. Okay no, I need to stop. He’s a murderer.  
  


I take my phone out of my pocket and start to check my to-do list. I have to add _‘call Lucas_ ’ to it now, great. As if I want any more reasons for him to snitch on me.   
  


Fine, first I have to pick up a shirt that Yangyang ruined with coffee from the dry cleaners before delivering some USB to a classmate of mine with a presentation.  
  


I shove my hands in my pockets after I put in my earphone and play some song. I walk out of the school building and reach in my bag to pull out my car keys when I suddenly am grabbed from behind with a cloth pressed against my mouth.  
  


I scream and trash against the hold. I realize that the cloth is soaked with chloroform and start to fight even more. The chemical works quicker than I thought and it heavy slows my movements and reaction time.   
  


I get dragged to a car before thrown into the trunk.

  
“Sleep”, says a very familiar voice with a blurry face before I get hit with something on my head and pass out.


	3. Mr Qian

I wake up with my hands and feet tied to a chair and a lot of questions. For one, where the heck am I? Who took me? For how long was I out? Why am I here?  
  


A door behind me opens and it makes a sound of very heavy metal. It slams closed as massive footsteps circle around me, a shiver runs up and down my spine.  
  


A guy with dark hair and broody eyes grabs a chair from somewhere out of the room and places it in front of me, with its back towards me and sits on it.   
  


I know this guy from somewhere but I can’t put my finger on it.  
  


“Well, well, well”, he says, cocking his head to the side. “Look who we have here.”  
  


I bite on the inside of my cheek and frown. “Do I know you? I feel like I know you from somewhere.” I study him better but still can’t figure it out.  
  


He looks too old to be in one of my lectures and too… rough looking to be a friend of a friend. Maybe he’s part from a gang? Could be WayV? Or maybe the one Jaehyun’s from.  
  


“Go stand outside Winwin”, says a disembodied voice and I freeze in fear. I know that voice…  
  


“Good afternoon, miss Zela. Or should I call you _(Y/n)_?”  
  


I suck in my breath when I see Mr Qian take place on the chair in front of me. He doesn’t really look pleased, a pair of cold eyes boring directly into mine.  
  


“S… Sir”, I nod with a slightly uncomfortable smile knowing I’m in deep shit right now.  
  


“I’m going to keep it short since I don’t have all day. For who do you work?”  
  


“For you, Sir.” My breathing starts to become more erratic and panicked. I do not know what will happen if Qian doesn’t believe me.  
  


He angrily throws the chair across the room before turning towards me and he grabs my hair to pull my head back. “Don’t fucking lie to me, I don’t like when I get lied to”, he hisses.  
  


“I- I don’t! I only work for you, Sir!” I start to shake and pray to God that either Lucas or Yangyang come bursting through that door to save my ass.  
  


“Then how did you know of the poison in the food?” Qian looks deeply in my eyes with the coldest look I’ve ever seen.   
  


“The two who were assigned to poison you are idiots. They were talking about it just in the hallway of my college.”  
  


Qian reaches in the pocket of his leather jacket and pulls out a knife and presses the blade against the skin of my neck while jerking my head even further back if that’s even possible.   
  


I let out a yelp of pain as tears start to form in my eyes, blurring the furious looking Qian.  
  


A loud bang on the door makes Qian look up before another person throws the door open. “Stop!”, yells Lucas and he hurries towards us. He comes into view followed by Yangyang and pushes Qian away from me.   
  


Yangyang quickly starts to undo the zip ties that hold me in place and looks at my face with worry in his eyes. “You’re bleeding…”, he points out and I reach with shaking hands for my neck to discover that Qian pushed the blade a bit too harsh against my skin - or more _into_ my skin.  
  


Lucas gives me a handkerchief and makes me push is against my neck. “Are you okay?”   
  


I nod blankly with a shaky breath. “I… I guess? How did you found me?” I turn towards Yangyang and he shows me a red dot on his phone screen.   
  


“That tracker I put on your phone.”  
  


“You put a tracker on me?!”, I say with wide eyes and he bites his lip, looking away.   
  


“It doesn’t matter right now, come on let’s get you home.” Lucas reaches out his hand for me to take and he pulls me out of the room, Yangyang wrapping an arm around me for support and warmth.  
  


“Absolutely not! You think you can just barge into the room and take her away?” To be honest, Mr Qian sounds far over furious.   
  


“Look, Kun, I don’t fucking care. She’s one of us and innocent. She’s actually helping us, all right?” Lucas turns around and looks at me with a look saying that I have to explain.   
  


“Ah-ah yes! I’m currently worming myself into one of the suspects’ life! Make sure he trusts me enough to share some secrets.”  
  


“And who gave you permission for it?” Qian folds his arms over each other and looks really unimpressed at it all.   
  


“Nobody. I saw my chance and took it.” Without another look, I walk out of the room supported by Yangyang.  
  


  
That night I could hardly get any sleep of course. The events from that day kept playing over and over. Every time I closed my eyes I saw Qian again so I stayed up, drinking too much coffee that it isn’t even healthy anymore.  
  


The day after is also not really working for me. The lessons are long, everybody’s constantly bumping into me, and I almost fell asleep three times during every class.   
  


Imagine how happy I am as I take place on my usual spot in the back of Mechatronics and lay my head on my backpack.  
  


“Hey, you okay?”, questions Jaehyun as he places his stuff on the empty space next to me.   
  


I let out a groan and turn my head around, facing him. “I haven’t slept in almost fourteen hours…”  
  


Jaehyun frowns. “That’s… really bad for your health. Did something happen?”  
  


I chew on my bottom lip as I see him looking at me with great concern in his eyes. I can’t tell him that my boss kidnapped and lightly tortured me because he was thinking I worked against him.   
  


“I erm… my neighbours are… really loud… while doing you know.” I almost facepalm myself at the stupid excuse that comes out of my mouth. I was better off by telling him it was nightmares.   
  


Jaehyun’s face is for a second twisted in confusion before his face falls and he looks horrified. “That’s so gross! Why can’t people just be quiet when they… you know?” He whispers the last part.  
  


“I’ve been asking myself the same question, dude.” I finally raise my head off my bag to take out my laptop and notebook when Mrs Shin walks into the classroom.  
  


“Hey, if you want to ─ I don’t know ─ lean on my shoulder to get some sleep, I’ll gladly take some notes for you. So don’t worry and close your eyes for a bit.”  
  


I smile gratefully and let my head drop against his shoulder and close my eyes without him saying it two times. An offer like this is rare.  
  


“Where even is Doyoung?”, I mumble softly, half asleep.  
  


Jaehyun chuckles and strokes a strand of hair away from my face. “He’s sick today, something to do with the flu or something.”  
  


I answer with a hum and quickly doze off, finding that Qian for the first time since last night doesn’t haunt me in my dreams.   
  


  
Jaehyun wakes me up once the class has ended and I shoot up, wide awake.  


“I- he- what?!”, I ask, not really knowing where I am. But I see the desks, the teacher, and Jaehyun. I quickly realize that I’m still in class and a blush spreads over my cheeks.  
  


“You okay?”, he questions with a small smile on his lips and I nod sheepishly. We pack up our things and walk out of the class while saying Mrs Shin goodbye.   
  


“I hope I didn’t snore”, I joke, scratching the back of my head. Yangyang has told me countless times that I snore. Imagine that I snored and that while I slept on him! Oh gosh…  
  


“Nah, you slept like a baby. Quite cute, actually.”   
  


I stop in my tracks and look at him in disbelieve. He’s so… smooth.   
  


“I erm… thank you for taking notes… and letting me use your shoulder as a pillow.”  
  


Jaehyun holds his hand open and motions a ‘come closer’ sign. “Give me your phone.”  
  


I hesitantly give it to him and he starts to type away on it. “I’ll put my number and email in your contacts so if you ever need me, I’m just one call away. And _don’t_ hesitate to call when something’s wrong”, Jaehyun looks into my eyes and I nod hastily.   
  


“There”, he says before handing me my phone back, “now I have your number and email too.” Jaehyun holds up his phone and I see that he has sent himself a text with my own contact information.   
  


We walk towards the parking space and I fetch my keys out of my bag. “Thank you. See you Monday?”, I question, smiling slightly towards the guy.   
  


“See you Monday”, he smiles back with a nod. “And remember, call me okay?”  
  


“Okay.”  
  


Jaehyun turns around and walks towards his car. I wave one last time before stepping into mine and driving away. A heavy breath leaves my lips. I’m just in but it feels like the stakes are already really high.


	4. Surprise visit

“Are you sure you can go alone? Don’t you need me or… or Lucas to join you?”, questions Yangyang with a worried look in his eyes as he watches me put on my coat.

“Don’t worry, YY”, I chuckle, “I’m only going to study at that coffee bar down the road. There will be enough people around me to be kidnapped again. Okay?” I lay a hand on his shoulder and smile at him.

“I guess you’re right”, he grumbles as he shoves his hands in his pockets. “I’m just… worried.”

“And I understand, but I have a mean right hook. Qian would be really stupid to try something so out in the open.” 

I swing my backpack over my shoulder and give my roommate one last pat on the shoulder before walking out the door, skipping down the stairs and getting into my car. 

Your first time being kidnapped hits different. The way Qian’s eyes spoke murder still haunts me every time I close my eyes. I mean, I would be a psycho to not feel a thing when you’re getting threatened with your life. 

With a sigh, I walk into the coffee shop and order something to drink. The barista gives me my beverage and I take place at the back, pulling out my books and laptop to study. 

But my peace is soon disturbed by another person dragging the chair in front of me back and taking place on it. I look up from my laptop screen and my breath hitches. The devil himself, Qian.

I part my lips to say something but no sound comes out my mouth. A feeling like my airways are getting squeezed shut overwhelms me as I scan the crowd.

He sighs and looks around. “Ehrm…”, he stops mid-sentence to lick his lips. “I─ how’s your neck?” He points towards the bandage Yangyang put on it to hide the wound and protect it from debris.

My hand reaches towards it and I swallow. “It’s okay, I guess?”

“Did you disinfect it? I don’t want it to get inflamed.” Qian runs a hand through his hair and chuckles awkwardly.

“Why are you here?”, I blurt out. “Sir”, I quickly add, my face turning beet red.

“No, you have every reason to be rude and defensive. I wanted to apologise. Thanks to my policy about anonymity I didn’t know you were actually working for me as you said. Is there any way I could make it up for you? Maybe a pay raise or a new car?”

I look baffled at my normally stonecold boss who has shame written all over his face. Is he… seriously buying my silence

“No thank you, Sir. I just… want to further inspect the suspects.” 

Qian sighs. “You’re actually not a spy, so normally I wouldn’t allow it. But for this time, you can. But you have to keep me or either Lucas up-to-date.”

I nod with a slight smile. “Of course, Sir. I’ll do my best.”

Qian nods and gets up. “Then I’ll leave you to study. Have a great day, (Y/n).” He turns around and nods towards two guys behind him and before they leave, he turns back around. “Don’t hesitate to give me a call if something’s wrong.”

I exhale and run a hand through my hair. I am glad he’s gone. I quickly grab my phone and text Yangyang about my encounter with the boss.

* * *

**To YY:** _  
BrO_   
_DuDE_   
_GangGang_

**From YY:**   
_What? Smth happened?_

**To YY:**   
_Guess who just came by and apologised to me??_

**From YY:**   
_Qian Kun?_

**To YY:**   
_Qian fucking Kun_   
_He apologised to me and even offered me help?_   
_If I ever got in trouble?_

**From YY:**   
_Omfg, the boss has lost it_

* * *

My eyes scan the place before I pack up my things and almost powerwalk out of the cafe. I don’t want the chance to see Qian again. God, he really freaks me out. 

I lay my backpack on the backseat of my car when I feel a tap against my shoulder. I shriek loudly and turn around, raising my hand to punch the shit out of Qian’s men if I need to. In case they’re here to take me again.

Before my fist makes contact with whoever dared to sneak up from behind me, they already stopped my swinging motion mid-air by grabbing my wrist. I open my eyes and see it’s Jaehyun and Doyoung, Jaehyun the one stopping my fist.

“Hold your horses, it’s only me”, he chuckles and I drop my hand.

“Do _not_ sneak up to me like that, you scared me to death.” I lay a hand on my heart and sigh. 

“So your immediate reaction is to punch someone?”, questions Doyoung with a slight raise of his eyebrows, Jaehyun elbowing him. 

“Yeah”, I say as I narrow my eyes. “You never know if their intentions good or bad.” I fold my arms protective over each other and lean against my car. Something about Doyoung’s stare makes me really pissed.

“How are you doing?” Jaehyun cocks his head to the side with a smile, ignoring the burning stare of Doyoung on the side of his head.

“Good, I guess. And you? How’s studying going?” Why am I acting like we’re friends? Are we friends? No, definitely not. We're just classmates that help each other when needed. It’s polite to say hello when you see each other.

“Thanks to your tip of Mrs Shin’s website my notes are getting better.” Jaehyun smiles brightly. How can be such a happy and cute person be in the mafia? 

I look at my watch and sigh softly in relief. “Oh look at the time, I have to go. It was nice seeing you. See you in class?”, I question while walking towards the driver’s side.

“Wait!”, Jaehyun calls out and I turn around. “Do you wanna hang out? Doyoung and I are going to the movies to see the new Frozen film. Care to join?”

I look at Doyoung and he scowls while looking away. He really doesn’t like me.

“I can’t, I’m sorry… I already promised my friend that I would go with him since he’s a big Olaf fan. Maybe we could hang out another time?” I give the two guys a pitiful smile and put a strand of hair behind my ear. 

“Ah”, Jaehyuns says, seeming a bit disappointed. “It’s okay, another time is also fun. See you?”

I nod and open the car door. “See you.”

Once I slide off my sneakers and place them in the shoe rack, I let out a relieved sigh.

Yangyang’s head peaks from behind the corner, chewing on some piece of bread that half sticks out of his mouth. “You’re home early, was it because of Qian?”

“Fuck yeah it’s because of Qian.” I walk towards the kitchen and pour myself a glass of milk. “And I also saw Jaehyun and Doyoung. I have a feeling Doyoung doesn’t like me.”

“Do you think he’s maybe onto you?”, he questions with big eyes.

“No…”, I shake my head, my eyes focusing on the countertop. “Well… You think?” I look up to my roommate and he shrugs. 

“Maybe you have to ask what’s his problem is? Playing innocent always gets me out of problems.” He opens the fridge and grabs a couple of cheese cubes. 

I roll my eyes. “Yeah, but you act innocent in front of a teacher and sweet talk your way out, not squaring up to some mafia guy who can easily kill you with the gun behind his belt.”

Yangyang looks at me with big eyes. “He carries a gun around, even at school?”

A sigh leaves my lips as I move around the kitchen, grabbing a bow to put some peanuts in it. “No, idiot. It was matter-of-factly. Well… I could see Doyoung carrying a gun to school. That dude has the vibe of a trained killer, I swear.”


	5. An unexpected guest speaker

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so, slight warning? This chapter has mentions of a badly written panic attack

It’s been a month or so since the cafe incident and I haven’t heard or seen Qian since then. Thank God he keeps up his own anonymity policy.

Qian Kun has this rule that he shouldn’t know the faces of certain departments, IT in specific. It keeps him and his employees save. Once someone gets recruited they only know the people closest to them and someone from Qian’s inner circle. 

YY and Lucas are the only faces I knew before I accidentally saw a photo of Qian on YY’s screen. 

YY had to do a background check on someone and accidentally opened Qian’s file when he wanted to show me how he did it. 

Of course, my first thought ─ like probably every other female he came across ─ is that he’s handsome. Not the big and buff way of handsome with a sixpack and a V line where you can cut fruit with. But the timeless kind of handsome. He’s still young but has a mean stare, thick eyebrows, and an okay bone structure. Not like that makes sense, but for him it does. 

So imagine my surprise when, the first thing I see when I walk in my first class of the day, I see Qian himself standing next to the teacher, talking to him. 

I quickly take place in the back of the class next to Ah Ran, one of my girlfriends, to hide between the masses without him seeing me. 

“Who’s that?”, I ask her in a whisper as we grab our laptops out of our bags. 

“I don’t know”, she replies with a shrug, “isn’t that the guest speaker of today? The one about business strategies?”

I look back to the front and my eyes lock with Qian. I gulp before quickly looking away. This couldn’t be any worse. 

“Settle down everyone.” Mr Li’s voice booms over everyone’s muffled chatter and the whole room grows quiet. 

“Today we have a guest speaker. This is Qian Kun, he owns a small business in the economics field and will be telling you guys about the ins and outs of economics.”

I swallow thickly, what is he planning? Qian is lucky this isn’t my class with Jaehyun. Otherwise, it would have been a total disaster.  
  


  
The hour passes slowly, with me not concentrating on any of Qian’s words. I feel his intense stares on my figure but I try my hardest to ignore it. The girls around me giggle, thinking he’s looking at them. After the presentation Qian prepared finally turns black, Mr Li reminded us to finish our paper on business strategies with the newfound information of Qian, he dismisses us.

“Hey, can I take a look at your notes after school? I couldn’t keep my attention to the presentation”, I ask Ah Ran as I quickly put my laptop in it’s designated spot in my bag. 

She rolls her eyes but complies. “Only if you buy me lunch.”

I laugh and push her hair away from her shoulder. “For you and your amazing notes, anything.” Ah Ran and I walk down towards the exit when Mr Li stops me. 

“(Y/n), can you come here for a second.” 

I stop in my tracks and look at Ah Ran. “Go to your class, I have a free period after this anyways.”

I turn around with a fake smile and walk towards Mr Li and Qian. “Yes, professor?” 

“Can you accompany Mr Qian to his car? The building is such a maze for someone outside our organisation..” Mr Li laughs a charitable chuckle, Qian joining him with cold eyes and I nod, knowing that I have no choice but to see Qian out. 

“Of course, sir. No problem.” I turn towards Qian and nod. “Ready to go, Mr Qian?” 

He nods and holds up his briefcase. “Yes, shall we?”

I bow one last time to Mr Li before leading Qian out of the classroom, my fake smile falling. 

“I got so lost on my way here that I didn’t want that a second time”, chuckles Qian as if he’s not some gangster with probably a .48 Glock in that briefcase of his. 

As we enter a deserted corridor, I stop and turn towards him. “No offence sir, but why are you here? Do you know how risky it would be if one of the two suspects saw you?”, I hiss the last part while taking a step closer towards him, still keeping enough distance between us. 

Qian coughs before looking around. “Hendery actually had to go but he has a… more important job right now. And I have the morning free so I thought why not? I didn’t even know this was your college.”

A humourless laugh leaves my lips. “Don’t tell lies, Sir. I know you did a background on me, YY told me.”

With a sight, Qian looks away and runs a hand through his hair. “No lying to you, I guess.”

I roll my eyes and start to walk towards the exit, almost jumping three steps at a time down the stone stairs. The faster Qian is away from school grounds, the earlier I can discuss this with YY and rage about it. 

Qian follows me quickly, not wanting to be lost again in the school. “How are you? Did your neck heal?”

“Sir…”, I sigh, holding the doors open for him to walk out. “Just… let me handle this, okay? I can do this.” I scan the parking lot and walk towards the most expensive-looking car. 

“Thank you for escorting me out. And I do trust you with this assignment, even though it’s not your field.” Qian opens the door on the drivers’ side and throws the briefcase on the backseat.

I nod shortly before turning around, quickly walking away. 

“(Y/n)…”, he calls behind me and I stop, “I have to ask you something.”

‘ _Shit’_ I think and turn around on my heels. “Yes?”, I smile uncomfortably. 

“I need you to be my date for a gala this weekend.” 

I look baffled at Qian. This has to be a joke. He can’t be serious right now. Doesn’t he have escorts or sugar babies for that? 

“You’re kidding right?” But the blank look on his face makes me realize that he _is_ serious.

I shake my head as Qian begins to talk, explaining his motive. “I am expected to bring a partner with me. I can’t bring Lucas with me. Rumours will start and that’s not good for the economy. Since you’re the only… female I know and trust─”

“So you decided that it has to be me who you take with you to that meeting-thingy. Like a piece of arm candy, a pawn to use.” I cut in with slight anger rising in my tone, the idea of just sitting there and being pretty going strongly against my moral. 

“Do _not_ cut me off! I am your boss, you have to comply with my orders”, he urges angrily and takes a step closer to me, towering over my figure. Our eyes lock and I see those familiar cold eyes I saw back in the basement. My breathing hitches in my throat and I take another step back, the anger replacing with slight fear. 

Qian notices my sudden change in behaviour and posture, pulling him out his trance, his eyes softening slightly. He takes two steps back and exhales deeply, closing his eyes to calm himself. 

“I apologize for my outburst.” He looks away and neatens his suit jacket and dress shirt. 

“No, you are right, sir. You are my boss and that was an… order. Just call or text me what I have to wear and when to expect you. I’m sure you could get my number from Lucas. Now if you excuse me.”

I turn around and speed walk away from Qian Kun and his unnecessary expensive-looking car. As I turn around a corner, I bump into a chest and stumble backwards. I land on the ground with an ‘oof’ escaping my lips. 

“Oh, (Y/n)!”, calls out Jaehyun and helps me up by my arms. Great, just what I needed, more mafia men in the middle of me having a beginning panic attack. 

My vision starts to blur and my knees give in, making me drop to the ground. A loud gasp leaves Jaehyun’s lips and he quickly catches me, pulling me towards one of the many benches in the hallway. 

“Breathe”, he whispers and pushes my hair away from my face, his eyes falling on the light scar on my neck. “Focus on my voice and close your eyes. Breathe deeply in, hold for a second, and then breathe out. Breathe in… hold… breathe out.”

I concentrate on Jaehyun and lean against him, focussing on how deep his voice is and the way his thumbs rub circles on the top of my hands. 

“When you feel ready, open your eyes and look into mine. Focus on them and, _if_ you can do it, describe them for yourself.” 

My eyes flutter open and I study his face first. How his bangs cover most of his forehead, his angular eyebrows, the small rings piercing his ears. 

I finally look up, expecting to see cold eyes. The eyes I meet are everything except cold. They are warm and look at me with great worry. 

“I see… warmth. And comfort. Little specs of lighter brown in them. I like them, they shine in the sunlight”, I mutter to myself, the words escaping my lips.

It seems like Jaehyun still heard it because his breath stops. He comes closer but stops just millimetres away from my face, quickly standing up from the bench and coughing. 

“Let me take you home. You can’t continue your day like this.” Jaehyun takes off his jacket and places it over my shoulders, engulfing me in an earthy smell. Strong hints of sandalwood, patchouli, and rosewood. 

I don’t ague and let him lead me outside, into his car and drive me home. As Jaehyun opens up the door of my apartment and placing me on the couch with a blanket and a glass of water before he leaves with a sad smile on his face.

A single thought crosses my mind. 

_How did he knew where I live?_


	6. All dolled up

I wake up a couple of hours later at the sound of the front door closing. As I sit up, a blanket slides off my shoulders onto the ground. 

Yangyang walks into the living room with a worried smile on his face. “Hey, how are you?” He takes place on the couch and brushes some hair out of my face.

“I had a panic attack”, I mutter hoarsely, my throat dry from sleeping and not drinking anything the whole day. “For how long did I sleep?”

Yangyang checks his watch. “It’s now almost half-past five. At what time did you get home? How did you even get home?” 

I swing my legs off the couch and stretch, a loud groan escaping my lips as my shoulder blades pop. Yangyang grimaces and moves away. 

I shuffle into the kitchen and as I grab a glass of water, I stop. “He was there.”

“Who?”, questions Yangyang as he walks into the kitchen, taking place on top of the countertop. 

“Qian Kun. He came as a guest speaker to my first class of the day. Nothing really happened until it ended and Mr Li asked if I could walk Qian out.”

Yangyang takes a sharp breath. “And then? Did he say something?”

I nod and turn around, my eyes filling up with tears by just thinking about it. “He, Uhm…”, I lick my lips, “he wants me to be his date for some formal gala he has this weekend. Something about me being the only female he trusts.”

A scoff leaves Yangyang’s lips. “The audacity to ask you of such favour while he almost cut your throat not even a month ago.”

“Right!” I look at him and start to fill my glass. “I said that to him too. Of course not in that way, more subtle. But Qian being a big, bad mob boss, he pulled a reverse Uno card and started to yell at me how I have to obey every word he says.”

My hands start to shake again. Yangyang takes them in his over and pulls me closer, resting my head on his shoulder. “You don’t have to continue if you can’t…”

“He had the same look, YY. The same murderous, cold look from back in the basement. He towered over me and just… the feelings of fear came rushing back into my veins. It filled me up and just consumed me from the inside.” 

At this point, tears roll down my cheeks and staining Yangyang’s sweater. He sighs deeply and strokes my hair, trying to comfort me. 

“I am so sorry you had to… endure that again. You know what, that’s it. You’re gonna stop working for WayV.”

I sniff, wiping away my tears and shake my head. “I can’t… YY, I’m too deep in right now. And besides, it’s not like he would let me walk freely with all this dirt on WayV.”

Yangyang nods, thinking deeply. “Maybe making a deal with Qian is the best option. Do it this weekend, when you two have a moment alone. Say you want out after you’re done with spying on those Korean scum.”

I chew on my bottom lip. “You think he will agree?”

“To be honest, I don’t know. Qian is an unexplainable man, you never know how he will react. But trying can’t be wrong. When even is that party?” 

I shrug while grabbing my phone from my backpack by the door. “He would text me about it.” I unlock my phone and go to messages. And at the top, I see a message from an unknown number. _Him_.

* * *

**From unknown number:**   
_A car will wait for you on Saturday, at 4 o'clock_

**To unknown number:  
** _Yes sir_

Next day I, while I put my jacket in my locker, I see Jaehyun approach me with a smile on his face. 

“Hey, how are you? Feeling a bit better?” He leans against the wall of lockers as he folds his arms in front of him. 

“Yeah. Thank you for your help yesterday.” I close the door and turn towards him. “Let me repay you.” 

The smile falls slightly off his face and he shakes his head. “No… you don’t have to. Every decent human would help you at that moment.”

Now it’s my turn to shake my head. “Not everybody, believe me. How about lunch today?” 

This isn’t even about the whole spying thing, I just want to thank him for taking care of me. 

Jaehyun glances over my shoulder and his eyes harden. I turn slightly around and see Doyoung standing at the end of the hallway with his arms folded over each other, a stern look on his face.

“I can’t… sorry.” He pushes himself off the wall and I frown. Jaehyun gives me a slight smile before rushing towards his friend.

I turn around and catch Doyoung’s eyes. He glares at me and I raise my eyebrows. He wouldn’t be on to me, right? 

To my dismay, Saturday rolled around quicker than I thought and I drag my tired body out of my bed around eleven, not having the motivation to get out of my bed earlier.

Yangyang left the house to hang out with some classmates so I have the whole apartment for my own.

So I decide to make sure I at least look presentable for tonight. And by presentable, I mean making sure my legs are hair-free, my skin somewhat cleaner, and my hair clean.

Just after I put on my boots, my phone chimes. I grab it and frown. A text from Qian.

* * *

**From Qian:  
** _I'm at the entrance. Don't make me wait_

* * *

He wouldn’t be… picking me up, right? Well, he did say ‘I’.

I fly down the stairs ─ as gracefully you can do that in heeled boots ─ walking out my building. And lo and behold, there’s he, leaning against his expensive black sports car with a bored look on his face while looking around.

He looks up as he hears the door slam closed after me and straightens up. Qian’s eyes study me up and down. “Let’s go”, he says with a sigh and turns around, walking towards the driver’s side.

I quickly walk towards the co driver’s side and slide onto the smooth leather.

The inside of the car is for sure just as expensive as my apartment. State of the art dashboard and touch screen, matt black detailing, and dark, smooth leather seating. 

“A team of stylists are waiting for you. They will make sure you look… presentable for tonight.” Qian glances towards me as he speeds off into the busy Hong Kong traffic. 

I hum, playing with the hem of my sleeves as I nervously watch out the window. 

Now’s not the time to ask about my departure, he doesn’t seem in a good mood. To be fair, he never does. Maybe tonight. Yeah, after the party.

Thanks to his quick drive style, we arrive at a skyscraper and he leads me in the building, towards the elevator. 

He stands with his hands in the pockets of his dress plants while we wait for the elevator to reach the first floor. 

“You don’t have to walk on eggshells around me, I’m not going to hurt you.” Qian’s voice is in comparison to Wednesday and just a few minutes back, softer. Almost normal.

I look up to him and when our eyes meet, I expect to meet the same cold ones he always has. But this time, I am greeted with a pair of soft brown orbs. They look… human?

My feet move on their own and I move one small step away from him.

The elevator doors finally open and we get in, raising to the top. Of course, Qian would own the penthouse. Crime bosses always own a penthouse or lavish mansion. 

As soon I set one step into the entrance, I get whisked away by a pair of ladies dressed in all black and put in a chair in front of a mirror in a bathroom. A wide arrangement of make-up lay in front of me as someone else rides in a rack with ten or more dresses on it. 

As my whole appearance from hair to nails and my face get all dolled up, one of the stylists starts to converse with me. 

“So, what dress do you like?”, she questions and rides the rack so it’s in my vision. My eyes scan the many colours and it falls on a slither of wine red. 

“May I see that one, the dark red one, please.” I point towards the dress and the stylist takes it off the rack, holding it out for me to see.

[The dress](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fi.pinimg.com%2F564x%2F79%2Fc2%2Fef%2F79c2ef1a968b28732e2633316e81320e.jpg&t=ZWJkMzM0NTk2MWFkYmE1MzhjNWEzNDY3MWNjMWZiMWYwZWEwMzY4YyxJSFBTaU5PUQ%3D%3D&b=t%3AGwCiEwid_vsUbvWy9mT86A&p=https%3A%2F%2Fsheeple.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F618950944290422784%2Freal-thing-6-all-dolled-up&m=0&ts=1608132464) has spaghetti straps and a triangle top, a high split at the right side that almost reaches the waistline. 

I nod with a smile. “Yes, that’s the one.” 

After my hair and make-up are done, I get up from the chair and take the dress with me to a corner of the bathroom that’s equipped like a dressing room. 

I slide quickly out of my normal clothes and into the beautiful red dress. I nervously walk from behind the curtains holding up the top. “Can someone zip me up?”, I question while turning around.

“I’ll do it”, says the deep voice of Qian behind me and the muscles in my back tense up. He strides towards me and places a hand on small of my back and the other he pushes my curled hair over my shoulder, reaching for the zipper. 

I hold my breath as he zips up the zipper, the places where his fingers touch my skin burn. 

After what feels for eternity he’s finally done and takes a step back, letting the stylists fix up my hair and make-up. 

“I’ll wait for you in the entrance hall”, says Qian before I hear a door close. I let out a big sigh of relieve and close my eyes so they can redo my eyeshadow. 

“The dress is a bit too long right now. But with the right pair of heels, it’s perfect”, says the same stylist from earlier and grabs a pair of black high heels from the rack and slides them on my feet.

I turn around to look in the mirror. And indeed, with the right pair of heels, the dress is perfect. I glide my hands down the curves and discover that there are pockets in it. 

I excitedly turn towards the stylists and smile. “It has pockets, oh my god.” A happy chuckle leaves my lips, the first in a couple of days. Who knew that pockets in a dress could bring me such happiness.


	7. The G in ‘gala’ is for everything goes wrong

I walk down the stairs towards the entrance hallway where I see Qian ─ and to my surprise ─ Lucas standing next to him, conversing in a soft murmur. 

Lucas is the first to notice me and whistles, his eyes shamelessly going up and down my figure. I roll my eyes and fold my arms in front of my chest. I cock my head to the side and let my eyes glide over his appearance. 

Lucas is wearing a dark grey [suit ](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fi.pinimg.com%2F564x%2Ff7%2F00%2Fb5%2Ff700b585cf247a66cf4bcf2b99ce04ce.jpg&t=MDVhMzcyZTg2Yzk5ZGYyZDE5Nzk1MmViZGViYzhlMzBmZjVkYmIxYyx3ZTJnU3owbQ%3D%3D&b=t%3AGwCiEwid_vsUbvWy9mT86A&p=https%3A%2F%2Fsheeple.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F619671675885240320%2Freal-thing-7-the-g-in-gala-is-for-everything&m=0&ts=1608133117)with small dots and crosses embroidered all over the jacket and pants, and a matching polo in the same colour as the suit underneath it. His hair is black and swept back. 

Qian turns around too. He’s wearing a blue-red striped [suit](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fi.pinimg.com%2F564x%2F3b%2F21%2F38%2F3b2138dafaaf160bd8c787ba14f3fddf.jpg&t=MjAzMjZlODczZDc4MjJmZDY0MzgxOTk5NTc4NjFhMDFhZjgxM2E1MSx3ZTJnU3owbQ%3D%3D&b=t%3AGwCiEwid_vsUbvWy9mT86A&p=https%3A%2F%2Fsheeple.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F619671675885240320%2Freal-thing-7-the-g-in-gala-is-for-everything&m=0&ts=1608133117), a white dress shirt underneath it, and a dark red tie, matching the colour of my dress. The handkerchief that peeks out from his breast pocket is black with small, white flowers. 

Now I know what they mean with a man’s impact is different when he’s in a well-tailored suit. 

“I never knew you could look anything more than trash”, remarks Lucas with a sly grin on his face and I punch him. He yelps and staggers away, holding his arm with a hurt expression. 

“You look… beautiful.” Qian’s voice is soft as he looks at me in almost something that looks admiration. 

“Oh, thank you, sir. You don’t look so bad yourself. The colour really suits you.” I look shyly down and put my hands in my pockets. 

Qian’s eyebrows raise as he notices the pockets. “Are those pockets? That’s pretty nice.” He mirrors my action and puts his hands in the pockets of his pants. 

Lucas coughs at our awkwardness. “Don’t you need to give her something?” 

Qian looks towards Lucas and nods, walking towards a side table and grabbing a clutch from it. It’s black with sparkles. 

He opens the clutch and pulls out a small semi-automatic handgun. “I entrust this to you. It’s for emergencies. When there is absolutely no way out and you have to protect yourself. Do you know how to use it?”

I nod slightly and take the semi-automatic in my hand, feeling the weight of it in my hand. “My dad used to have a shooting range so I’ve shot my fair share of weapons. Is it loaded?” 

Qian nods, taking in a sharp breath as I pull back the top to hear it click and aim at the window before putting it away in my bag. 

“Great, we’re ready to go”, says Lucas as Qian keeps staring at me with an unreadable look in his eyes. 

I sit next to Qian on the way towards the venue, Lucas sitting next to the driver. I nervously play with one of the rings on my fingers as the radio softly plays in the background. 

“Listen, I have to discuss a couple of things with you, (Y/n).”

I look up with a gasp as I didn’t expect Qian to say my name. “Yes, sir.”

“Firstly, you don’t have to call me ‘sir’. Just Kun or even _honey_ is enough since you are playing my girlfriend. Secondly─”

My eyes grow wide as saucers. “Yo- your girlfriend? Sir– I mean…” I blink confusedly. What do I need to call him now? 

“…Kun”, he says slowly. 

“Yes, Ku- Kun. You never said anything about me playing your girlfriend?! Only─”

“My date, I know,” Kun nods and straights the cuffs of his jacket, “but it is a far better alibi to be my girlfriend. Mostly for your safety.” A deep sigh leaves his lips. “The people that attend this gala won't be your teacher or everyday businessmen. They are powerful assets in the underworld, crime bosses and cartel runners. If they know you are… mine… they wouldn’t dare to touch you.”

I clench my jaw. “And here I was thinking that WayV was just a small crime organisation.” The words leave my lips in a mumble but Kun still catches them.

“I keep it that way on purpose. When one of you get caught or arrested, you aren’t a threat to the whole organisation. That’s my privacy policy.”

Lucas throws me a look over his shoulder. “Only seven in total know the base of WayV, also Yangyang, Kun, and I.”

Before I can say something, the driver cuts in, “Sirs, ma’am. We’re here.” 

Lucas gets out of the car and opens Kun’s door first before Kun walks around and opens my door, leaning a hand so I can climb out. 

“Thank you, Huang. You are free for the evening, just give the keys to valet once you parked the car.” Kun closes the door after saying that and the car sets off.

I turn around and look at the big and beautiful mansion made of white marble and gold. It’s absolutely magnificent to look at. 

I grab Kuns arm and wrap my hands around his biceps, taking deep breaths before walking in. 

Once inside, Kun is greeted by the people we come across with a deep bow or a shake of his hand. We do another round of greetings before settling on one group of socialites with champagne in our hands. 

I put on the best smile I can and opt to zone out all the business talk until I notice that all the eyes are on me. 

“Oh… I’m sorry?”, I smile politely and the group laughs. 

“We were talking about you, _baby_.” Kun smiles down at me and my breathing stops momentarily. He has to smile more often, it really suits him. 

“Yeah, we didn’t catch who she is, Mr Qian”, says a guy in begin twenty with jet black hair and high cheekbones.

“This is (Y/n), my lovely girlfriend.” Kun looks down with a lovesick grin and I smile back, playing my part the best I can as I notice that Kun’s going all in. 

“It’s nice to meet you all. I was actually quite nervous to come with him as this is the first time he asked me to join him to any business parties.” I raise my glass to my lips and take a small sip. 

“Oh? How did the two of you meet?”, asks a tall woman with cat-like eyes. 

I look at Kun, expecting him to answer that but he shakes his head. “No baby, you tell. You can do it better than me.” 

Motherfucker. 

“Well,” I begin, pulling out everything I learned during my creative writing course in high school. “Kun came to my college and gave a talk about economics and how you plan your company’s strategy. It was actually quite hard because he sometimes uses big words.”

A laugh ripples through the group and I notice how other people also seem to listen in. 

“So I went to him after he ended his presentation and asked for some extra explanation. We ended sitting together for almost an hour, talking about everything and nothing. We ended up hitting it off pretty good.” 

I talk animately with my hands, making sure I don’t spill my champagne and look at Kun with a soft smile, not missing the surprise in his eyes.

“And then? Did you guys go on a date after that?”, asks the same tall woman and I shake my head. 

“No, we didn’t see each other for a month after that. Until I saw him again in a cafe off-campus. And the rest is history.” I end with a sigh and the woman coos. 

“Look at you, Qian. Finally getting your life together after all these years.” An evil smirk forms on her face and Kun glares at her. 

“Yeah, you could say that.” He pulls me closer by my waist and I let out a gasp. “Now, if you will excuse us, I want to show (Y/n) the buffet table.” 

He whisks me away from the group and I look over my shoulder, the group immediately whispering to each other. 

“I actually didn’t expect you to make such a believable story on the spot. It kinda surprised me, to be honest.” 

I glance over the table with expensive-looking food and shrug. “I’m just doing my part.” I glance over my shoulder and see the group looking at us. I quickly stand on my toes and bring my lips towards Kun’s ear. 

“They’re looking at us, so I’m improvising”, I whisper as he looks at me weirdly. 

“Chill, you two love birds”, groans Lucas as he walks towards us, a plate full with food in his hands, “you don’t want to whole room to see you kiss.”

Kun makes a snarky comment back and they start to bicker back and forth. I turn my head around and scan the room. 

No familiar faces, only men in expensive suits and snobby women, showing off the diamonds on their neck and wrists. Until I suddenly see a familiar face staring at me from across the room and I stop breathing. 

Jung Jaehyun. He’s wearing a brown three-piece suit with a white blouse underneath it, the collar pulled high. His eyes focused on me with an unreadable expression. 

I look away I shock and turn my back towards him. “He’s here”, I hiss, making the men look at me. “Jung Jaehyun’s here and he has spotted me. This is _not_ good.”

Kun glances casually over my shoulder and spots Jaehyun too. “Great”, he rolls his eyes annoyed. “What now?”

“I don’t know, I’m asking you!” The panic in my eyes is visible as I feel his eyes burn the back of my head. 

“Here’s the plan”, says Lucas. “You’re just going to be doing what you have to do; be pretty, answer relationship questions, and stick to Kun’s side. And when Jaehyun corners you, act like you don’t know that you ‘boyfriend’s’”, Lucas uses air quotations for the boyfriend part, “real job is. Just some high up in an electronics company.”

I nod and sigh deeply. That’s the plan and I’m going to stick to it.


	8. Choices

An hour later and I am still glued to Kun’s side, politely laughing at the jokes of his associates and redirecting questions about Kun’s business.

“Hey, I’m going to run to the bathroom real quick”, I whisper into Kun’s ear. The need to pee is present for thirty minutes already and I can’t hold it in any longer.

“Do you need Lucas to go with you?” Kun licks his lips while eyeing Lucas who’s talking happily with the dark-haired boy with high cheekbones from earlier.

“That’s not necessary. If I‘m not back within half an hour come to seek for me, okay?” Kun nods and I excuse myself from the conversation.

I make my way down the hall when I feel a hand grab mine and I turn around with a loud gasp, seeing Jaehyun standing before me with harsh eyes. He pulls me into an empty room and closes the door behind himself.

“What are you doing here, (Y/n)?”, he asks with great concern in his eyes and voice. His eyes scan my face.

“I… I am here with my… boyfriend. He asked me to join him at his company party. What are _you_ doing here?”, I ask in return, playing dumb.

Jaehyun sighs and shakes his head. “God, (Y/n), you’re so naive. Do you even know who he is, what he _does?_ ” His voice sounds rough and I take a step back, this side of him new to me. 

“What do you mean? He’s just Kun, Qian Kun. Please stop, you’re scaring me Jaehyun.” My eyes plead for him to stop as I take another step back, hitting the wall behind me with the back of my heels.

He begins to breathe rapidly. “Leave him, he’s not a good man. He murders for a living, (Y/n)!” Jaehyun grabs my shoulder harshly and I yelp.

“Let go of me, Jaehyun!” I push him as hard as I can away from him and rush out the room, towards Kun and Lucas. 

Once I reach them, I cling onto Kun’s arm for my dear life. “Please, let’s go. I beg you. He’s after me.” This time, the pleading in my eyes is real. I just want to get out of here. 

Lucas glances over my shoulder and sees Jaehyun walking in, his hair dishevelled and his eyes franticly searching for me. 

“It’s Jaehyun”, I say and as a trigger word, Kun begins to undertake action. 

“Lucas, grab the car keys and bring the car to the front. (Y/n), do you have your bag?”, Kun asks as Lucas moves away quickly and I nod, showing the small bag I have been clutching the whole time, “good, keep it close to you.”

Kun does a quick goodbye round before leading me out the door, setting me in de co-drivers seat before getting behind the wheel himself, Lucas at the back. He speeds off, onto the highway.

A string of curse words leaves Kun’s lips as he looks in the rearview mirror, a couple of cars following ours. “Hold on tight, this is going to be a rough ride.”

He grabs the wheel tightly, his knuckles turning white as he makes sharp turns, in the hope to shake our tail off. But to his displeasure, they can keep up. 

Suddenly, a man hangs out one of the windows and fires a gun at us, a yell of surprise escaping my lips. I feel Kun’s hand grazing mine comfortingly before shifting the gear, making a sharp turn left. 

Bullets scrape the car paint until one hits a tire and the car starts to spin before flipping and rolling. I feel a hand on my stomach to protect me from being lunged out of my seat but it has no big use. 

When the car finally stops, it’s upside down, the roof on the road. 

“Kun!”, I cry out and turn towards him, seeing him unbuckling my belt first then his own. Tears stream down my face as I feel pain everywhere, blood dripping down my face and arms where glass and whatnot have cut me in the crash. 

“Listen to me, you have to do exactly what I say, okay?” He tries to wipe away some of my tears with his hands but only makes it more of a bloody mess. “I want you to grab the gun out of your bag and when I say now, run as fast as you can. Understood? Get yourself to safety.”

I nod shakily and search for my bag, and pulling out the loaded gun. Kun also pulls out a gun from a sealed compartment and counts down. “3… 2… 1… NOW!” 

He kicks open the door and gets out, firing his gun at the cars behind us. I push for what’s the remainder of my door open and crouch out, counting down myself before running away from the gunfight, bunching up my dress and kicking off my shoes so I can run at full speed, ignoring the shattered glass that cuts in the soles of my feet. 

I hear footsteps behind me and I scream, getting into an alleyway. But to my dismay, it’s a dead end. 

I turn around like a dear in the headlights and see Jaehyun sprint towards me in full speed. I raise my gun shakily and he comes to a halt, holding his hands up in the air as a sign that he’s defenceless. 

“Drop the gun, (Y/n). You’re playing with a fire weapon, it’s dangerous.” His voice is soft but still has an undertone of demand in it. 

Tears stream down my face and mix in with the blood from my nose and the cuts in my cheeks. “Back off, Jaehyun. I don’t want to shoot you!” I motion with the gun that he has to turn around and walk away.

“You don’t have to! Lay the gun down and leave with me. He’s an evil man, (Y/n)! He would kill you if he’s done with using you. Please, come with me. I could give you a real job, a place in a family. Somewhere you are safe and out of harm’s way.” Jaehyun opens his arms for me and I gulp.

What shall I do? Shall I toss the gun away and run into his arms and escape. Or stay on the spot I am, and shoot? 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so, the next two chapters are a choose your own ending.   
> Option A (chapter 9) is Kun's ending, and option B (chapter 10) is Jaehyun's ending


	9. Shoot him

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is option A: Kun's ending. If you want Jaehyun's ending, go to the next chapter (9B)

I shake my head, guild in my eyes and hands trembling. “I… can’t, Jaehyun. I’m sorry, but I can’t betray him!” 

“WHY?! He’s a no-good…”, Jaehyun takes a step closer to me and my hold around the gun tightens.

“Don’t come closer, I’m going to shoot you!”

“… Filthy, hollow…” Jaehyun still walks closer with dark eyes. His jaw is clenched, just like his hands. Knuckles white as snow.

I take a deep breath and turn my head away, firing the gun. The clap back makes me stumble and I fall backwards. My back hits the wall harshly and I slide down.

“Motherfucker”, he whispers and clutches his chest. Jaehyun stumbles back before losing his balance and falling backwards, his breathing quivery and blood pouring out of the wound profusely, staining his blouse. 

At that exact moment, another person walks into the alleyway. I look up and curse realising it’s Doyoung. 

“You bitch!”, he growls as he sees his partner on the ground with a bullet wound in his chest. He raises the massive shotgun in his hands while pulling back the fore-end to reload, “I knew you couldn’t be trusted.”

He storms towards me while firing the gun, nearly all of them missing me. Except two. One pierces me through my dress into the flesh of my stomach and the other my shoulder. 

A scream escapes my lips and I buckle over, my hand towards my stomach and the other on the dirty ground for support. A pain that is far more painful than anything I have experienced. It feels like my inside gets ripped to shreds and then burned. 

Before Doyoung can get any closer, another gunshot is heard from behind him and he gets hit right through his skull, Doyoung’s blood splattering on me. He drops down and I focus on the person on the other end.

Kun runs towards me and drops down on his knees, grabbing me and bringing me closer to him. 

“Hey, hey, look at me. It’s going to be all right, okay?” Kun takes my hands and presses it against the wounds. “Press it nice and tightly, yes.” He gets up and takes me in arms, walking out of the alleyway and towards a car, stepping over bodies. 

He lays me on the backseat as Lucas steps behind the wheel. “Drive quick and call Ten, we need him”, orders Kun sternly and Lucas nods.

I turn my head to the side and blink a couple of times, my vision blurry. The only thing I want to do is just shut my eyes and sleep as I have not enough energy to keep away. 

I close my eyes, ignoring the muffled yells coming from Kun to stay awake. Right now I want to be selfish and just sleep. Yeah. Maybe if I sleep everything will turn out to be a dream. A really bad and fucked up dream

I open my eyes slowly. The first thing that greets me is a white ceiling. A groan erupts from my lips as I get aware of the pain in my body. My head hurts like a bitch. My left-hand goes to my forehead and I feel the cotton of bandages. My brows furrow and I sit up. Only to be cursing slightly at the sharp pain in my shoulder and stomach. Oh right, last night. 

My eyes travel around the room and land on a sleeping figure in an armchair right by the window. It’s Kun, he looks tired despite his sleeping form. He has a five o’clock shadow, his hair is sticking out from all different sides, and his clothes ─ the same suit from the gala minus the jacket ─ look dishevelled and have dark stains on them. Not like the Qian Kun I’ve ever seen. 

Without making any sounds, I walk out of the bedroom. My body aches and my feet hurt, them also being in bandages. I must have stepped into some glass last night. 

I turn left and down a flight of stairs before I shuffle into the same living room I saw before, this time giving it a good look. It’s industrial, with dark tones and lots of woods. The view outside the window gives me a perfect overview of Hong Kong. 

Next to the living room is the dining room and kitchen, all of course in the same style. The walls of the diner room are plastered with rows and rows of wine bottles. The kitchen is black and has all the new and high tech appliances. 

Two figures stand in the kitchen, Yangyang and Lucas. Lucas is cooking, Yangyang sitting on the countertop and scrolling through his phone. Most likely Twitter. The boy is addicted to the app. 

Lucas looks up from the frying pan as he hears me walking into the room. He almost drops the utensils, pure shock on his face. “(Y/n)”, he says lightly. 

Yangyang turns around with big eyes and jumps off the countertop, running towards me before engulfing me into a hug. “You’re awake!”

I let out a loud yelp and push him away, clutching my stomach. “Watch out, dumbass. I got shot, remember.” 

He apologises with a guilty smile before softly nudging me towards the kitchen island, making me sit there and wait for Lucas to plate up the food.

“I erm… for how long has Kun sat there?” 

Both the men look surprised. “Since when are you on first-name-basis with Qian?”, questions Yangyang, as he points with his thumb over his shoulder. A light blush spreads on my face. 

“We-well he asked me last night to call─”, I stutter out but Lucas cuts me off mid-way. 

“Excuse me? _Last night?_ (Y/n), that was three days ago.” Lucas turns his full body towards me as he lays a plate full of food in front of me. 

Three days? Holy shit, the amount of schoolwork I’ve missed must be huge.

“How much blood did I lose?” I cock my head to the side, softly feeling the badges around my stomach and shoulder. 

“A lot, I guess? Kun wouldn’t let us go near you when Ten worked on your wounds.” Lucas shrugs as he moves around to grab more plates. 

I frown. “Ten? Is that…?” I stop and mimic someone putting a bag over my head.

“No, that was Winwin. He’s the one doing the kidnappings and interrogations. Ten is our doctor”, explains Lucas with a shake of his head. “How are you feeling?”

“Like I’ve been to hell and back? My body aches with every step I take and let’s not forget the bullet wounds. This is going to be a fun one for my therapist.” I roll my eyes and push some egg in my mouth. 

Yangyang sighs in relieve. “Thank God you’re alive. We had our doubts.”

I give Yangyang an ‘are-you-kidding’ look. “Sure, misses _Doubt_ fire. You only worried because you had to find a new roommate if I were dead.”

“Yo- you really think I’m that heartless?” Yangyang fakes being hurt, earning a slight scoff from me.

I push myself off the chair, putting my empty bows in the sink. “I know you’re dead inside, YY, let’s not pretend otherwise. Shall I bring this to K– …Qian?”, I say, pointing to a bow with noodles still standing on the countertop. 

Lucas nods and without much talking, I scoop up the bowls and walk away, every now and then hissing in pain as I walk up the stairs. 

With a deep breath, I open the door to the bedroom slowly and peek my head in. A relieved sigh leaves my lips as I see Kun still sleeping. I place the bowl on the side table and softly squeeze Kun’s knee. 

“Kun? Wake up. Hey, Kun?”, I whisper and Kun’s eyes shoot open, jumping on his feet and pulling a gun out of nowhere. He holds the gun up and points it at my head. 

A shriek leaves my lips and I stumble backwards, tripping over the carpet and falling on the ground. I scramble away from the gun, memories of that night and three days ago flooding back. The panic coming back into my system.

My sigh narrows and all the horrible things flood in. The gun, a dead Jaehyun, the cold eyes of Kun, the pain of a bullet ripping through my skin. I pull my knees up and bury my face in it, my thick tears wetting the fabric of my sweatpants.

I feel two hands grabbing my shoulders and stroking it calmly, a shushing in my ear telling me to calm down. My hands act on their own and I let go of my knees, holding onto a shirt instead, my knuckles turning white.

“Hey, look at me. Look at me and everything will be fine.” I raise my eyes and look into a pair of dark brown ones. “Nobody can or will hurt you, you understand? Now take deep breaths until you feel all right again.” 

I do what the voice says and I stay like that for the next couple of minutes until my breathing slows down and my body stops shaking. I pull away and soft cotton wipes over cheeks, drying them from my tears.

I look up and see Kun looking at me with worry in his eyes. “Hi”, he whispers.

“Hi”, I whisper back, blinking at the alien way Kun acts. He’s normally so… hard and stoic, his eyes cold or filled with anger. But now, he’s warm and helping. His eyes are soft, almost comforting.

“I… I am sorry.” I let go of Kun’s crumpled up shirt. “I erm… I panicked at the sigh of… the gun.” The last part comes out of my mouth in almost a whisper, scared if I say those two words out loud, Kun will pull that devil’s device out of his pocket. 

“It’s okay, I understand. You’ve been through a lot. The only thing what helps is time. And maybe talking about it. I know a person who helped me a lot.”

I frown and look up to him. “Helped you?”

Kun nods and gestures next to me. I nod and scoot over, pulling my knees up to my nose, my interest piqued.

With a sigh, Kun lay his hands in his lab. “When I joined my old gang, I never dealt with the real deal before. Yes, I shot a gun and my father trained me in combat with both knives and my bare hands. But I never could fathom how my first mission in the field would go.” 

Kun stops, glancing at my side. I nod slightly and lean closer to him. His hair falls before his eyes and I swear, I can see a tear in the corner of his eyes. 

“My first mission was a bit like what happened to you. There was a car chaise, our car crashes and I ran away, a… gun in my trembling hands, ready to protect myself. The enemy had cornered me and I shot five men. Dead withing seconds. It felt weird, how much power I had over someone’s life with just such a silly thing.” 

The room is silent as I hang onto the story. It really sounds like a couple of days ago.

“The leader, he saw that I was struggling with what I’ve done and brought me to a psychiatric, so I could talk and work on my nightmares. She told me tips on how I could calm myself down when I had a panic attack.”

At that moment, for the first time since I’ve known Qian Kun, he seemed more than just a crime boss. At that moment, right there, he was human. He showed me a part nobody ever got to see of him. How human he truly is under his thick skin. In the end, he was just a twenty-something with demons just like every other person.

“Would you… would you like me to take you to her? Because I couldn’t forgive myself if your life is ruined because of me.” Kun turns away and lets his head hang low in shame. 

A sigh leaves my lips and I lean with my forehead on his shoulder. “I just… don’t want to do it alone, please?”

Kun lets out a warm chuckle. “Don’t worry. I wouldn’t let you do this on your own. Even if you wanted it.”


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is option B: Jaehyun's ending. If you want Kun's ending, go back to the previous chapter

I shake my head while tears stream over my face. “You’re right, I don’t want to do this.” I let the gun glide out of my hands before taking a couple of steps only for Jaehyun to grab me and bring me closer, wrapping his arms around my body. 

“It’s okay”, he whispers stroking the back of my head, “you’re safe now.”

At those words, I burst out in tears. Mostly from shock, but also from all the bottled up emotions. 

The weeks of emotional damage are finally over. The reign of Qian Kun over me has ended and it almost feels… like a heavy burden is lifted off my shoulders. Freedom and choice finally mine again after fearing for long.

With a sigh, Jaehyun lets go of me. “Let’s go while Qian is still distracted. Once he notices you’re gone, he will be furious. Can you run?”

My gaze goes down to my feet, which I notice are bloody from the glass I run through. Jaehyun follows my eyes and hisses, concern on his face.

“That’s…" 

"Painful”, I say, my feet starting to sting as the adrenaline begins to settle down. “But I’ll manage.” I grab Jaehyun’s hand and give it a reassuring squeeze, a tight-lipped smile on my face.

He nods while pulling me out of the alleyway, stopping before the end and peering around the corner. I see him mentally count down before pulling me towards a black SUV, a yelp escaping my lips.

He quickly pushes me inside as soon as the door slides open. “Quick Mark, get us out of here. Doyoung, fix up her feet, will you?”

Doyoung, who’s sitting shotgun, turns around with an annoyed expression. “What she's doing here, Jung.” He narrows his eyes suspiciously. 

“Calm your tits, Kim. Can’t you see the glass shards sticking out of her feet?” Jaehyun answers Doyoung’s glare with the same kind of stern gaze.

With a lot of grumbling, Doyoung climbs down the backseat with a first-aid kit under his arm, pushing Jaehyun out of the way. He places my feet on his lap and starts to clean up the blood and dirt, roughly pulling out the sharts. 

As my feet get mended, I have time to look at the driver. I notice that it’s one of the guests of the party, the guy with high cheekbones and black hair, now messily pushed out of his face.

He throws me a smile once he catches my eyes through the rearview. “So”, he begins to break the silence in the car, “are you Qian’s girlfriend?”

I shake my head. “No, I just work for him. He kind of forced me to go with him tonight. He used one of his Uno trick cards on me.” A shiver runs up and down my spine at the memory of him screaming at my face and his cold eyes. 

“Is that why you had… a panic attack?”, Jaehyun questions while draping his suit jacket over my shoulders. 

I give a short nod. “Yeah, I told YangYang later on… Oh God, Yangyang! I can’t leave him without anything. And all my stuff!”

“We don’t have time for you to return to your dorm to pack up your stuff. Besides, I’m quite sure Qian will send someone to check on you once he notices you’re gone”, Doyoung says while taking out a shard and I hiss, slightly pulling my feet back. 

“He’s not home, my roommate”, I mumble through locked lips as Doyoung manhandles my feet. “He’s staying at a friend’s place." 

With a loud sigh, Mark nods and turns the wheel around. "Fine, just make it quick, okay?" 

I nod happily and let Doyoung bandage up my wounds, stippling out a route for me to walk without being seen.

I close the door behind me softly, my eyes scanning the apartment. The lights are off and the curtains are drawn. Would Yangyang be already back?

I make my way towards my room. The door creeks and I suck in my breath, waiting for a sound. But nothing comes and I move around the room, clothes and other necessities in a large bag. 

I rip the dress off my body and put on the first best clothes I see lying on the floor, rushing to get my shoes on to get out when the door opens. 

Yangyang stops in his tracks and looks at me with wide eyes. “(Y/n)? What happened to your face?”, his eyes scan my face before going to the bag in my hand. “Where are you going?”

Tears fill my eyes as I rush towards him and hug him, for what can be the last time. “I’m so sorry”, I whisper before turning around and sprinting away. 

As I stumble out of the building, I see Jaehyun leaning against the van with his arms crossed, his eyes fixed on the door. His eyes light up and he opens the door, helping me inside and throwing my bag in the trunk. 

“Finally”, sighs Mark when Jaehyun is seated and drives away, taking sharp turns and not stopping for any traffic lights.

“Are you okay?”, whispers Jaehyun as he takes my hand in his, rubbing circles on the top of my hand as he notices tears streaming down my cheeks.

I sniff, leaning my head on his shoulder. “I… I don’t know.” I look up into Jaehyun’s eyes and wipe away a fresh tear. 

“It hurts now, but in the end, everything will be alright. I promise.” He pulls out a handkerchief from his pocket and lets me blow my nose with it, a soft smile on his lips. 

I crumble the handkerchief up in my hand and close my eyes, a tired sigh leaving my lips. If I just close my eyes for a second, it will be okay.

My brows knit together as I hear the sound of birds chirping. I turn around with a groan and bury myself under the fluffy blankets, laying closer to the warm chest next to me.

I open my eyes, blinking at the bright light the comes through windows with white drapes and lay on my back, letting my eyes get adjusted to the sudden brightness. 

“Good morning”, mumbles the sleep-filled voice of Jaehyun next to me as he pulls me closer by the waist, snuggling his nose in the crook of my neck.

“Wh- where are we?”, I question confused as to why I am no longer in the van.

“We’re in London, in one of NCT's hideouts. You fell asleep in the car and wouldn’t wake up, not even when we boarded the plane.” A chuckle leaves his lips. “I guess that’s how your body handles with stress.”

I sit up. “London? Wha- what?” I shake my head and blink, my eyes travelling across the room we’re in. A bedroom.

“Well”, begins Jaehyun as he also sits up, leaning against the headboard. “We had to leave the country after I stole the sweetheart of the most dangerous man in Hong Kong, if not China. It was not safe for you to stay any longer there. London was the first place available.” 

A blush spreads over my cheeks. “I wasn’t…”, I mumble and look away. “He and I weren’t… anything. I was more scared of him than anything else.”

Jaehyun chuckles as he scoots over, making me look at him. “Everyone saw the stars in his eyes when he looked to you.”

“All I saw was cold eyes and hatred. He’s controlling…” A shiver runs down my spine and I quickly get out of bed and walk towards the window, my gaze fixating on the red double-decker bus riding around the streets. “I want to do nothing to do with him, not anymore. It was never my choice to join his stupid gang.” A sigh leaves my lips. “It was Yangyang that convinced me to work for him, seeing I have my way with computers.”

I feel Jaehyun move behind me and he wraps his arms around my body, his chin on my shoulder. “It’s okay. That part is all over now.”

Another sigh leaves my lips and I step away from Jaehyun, his handprints leaving burning hot pain where he touched me. “Look, Jae… I like you, I really do. But the truth is, the past couple of months all men have done is hurt me, scared me, _scar me_. Their cold eyes and taste for destruction, it chills me to the bone.”

A silence overcomes the room, the traffic outside the room so much louder all a sudden. I wrap my arms around my body and walk towards the windows. My eyes follow the red busses and cabs, people walking past us, oblivious to what is happening right now. If they only knew that a gang had their hideout right in front of them, they would freak out.

Jaehyun stands awkwardly in the middle of the room, his eyes focused on me, his hands clenching and relaxing his sweatpants. “I… I am sorry. And I know, those words mean shit for all the mental damage you’ve had, but let me prove that I am─”

“─Not like them?”, I cut him off with a humourless chuckle. Jaehyun nods. I turn around and look at my bag on a chair, still zipped close. “Just… give me time. That’s all I ask from you.”

Jaehyun nods as he takes a step back. “Then that’s what you get. Take all the time in the world you need to heal and I’ll be right beside you, ready to be there you when you need me to.”


End file.
